1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a gas-fired cooking apparatus. In one aspect, the invention relates to a portable gas stove having removable legs. In another aspect, the invention relates to a method of packaging a portable stove with removable legs.
2. Description of the Related Art
Outdoor cooking is an increasingly popular pastime. Traditional grilling on a charcoal grill has been supplanted by a variety of outdoor cooking techniques, many utilizing portable gas-fired cook stoves. One popular technique involves placing food items in a large cook pot containing oil or water which is heated by a portable cook stove supplied with a gas, such as propane, from a small cylinder. Such cooking assemblies have transformed typical backyard barbeque fare from hamburgers and hotdogs to deep-fried turkeys and boiled seafood dinners. The cooking of large food items, such as a turkey, or large quantities of a variety of food items, has given rise to larger cooking pots, which, when filled with the food items and the cooking liquid, can become quite heavy. The portable cook stove must consequently be capable of safely supporting such weight while the cook operates the device and handles the food being cooked therein. At the same time, the cook stove must be portable, relatively lightweight, and readily stored. Ideally, the cook stove must be capable of being easily disassembled for convenient storage and transportation, and reassembled for use.
Knock-down (or portable) cook stoves typically include removable legs. In addition to ease of storage, removable legs facilitate the shipping of a larger number of units in an ocean shipping container or truck. This lowers shipping costs and the ultimate cost of each unit. However, is consequently necessary for the end-user to attach the legs to the body of the cook stove.
Conventional cook stoves have legs attached to the body with a threaded connection such as a bracket which holds the legs to the body using small bolts or screws. The cook stove can be difficult and time-consuming to assemble, particularly if the fit and form of the threaded connections are poor. As well, the fasteners can rust over time, contributing to failure of the connection. Significantly, the load-bearing weight of the cook pot, food items, and cooking liquid is necessarily transferred to these small horizontal fasteners. If the legs are improperly installed, fasteners over-torqued, or if the fasteners have insufficient strength, the connection can fail, resulting in collapse causing fire, property damage, or personal injury due to contact with the hot cooking liquid.
A portable cook stove adapted for supporting a cooking pot thereon comprises a wall having a closed hoop configuration defining a periphery, wherein the wall defines a central opening therethrough, at least one cooking pot support mounted to the wall in a generally transverse orientation to the wall and extending into the central opening, the at least one cooking pot support defining a cooking pot support surface for supporting the cooking pot thereon, a burner mounted to the wall in a generally coaxial configuration with the central opening, the burner adapted to be operably interconnected with a source of fuel, a plurality of mounting portions mounted to at least one of the wall and the at least one cooking pot support in spaced locations around the periphery of the wall, and a plurality of ground-engaging legs connected to the mounting portions, wherein one of a lower surface of the wall and an upper portion of the plurality of legs has a mounting opening with a terminal end thereon adapted to receive the other of the lower surface of the wall and the upper portion of the plurality of legs when the plurality of legs are mounted to the mounting portions, and wherein the one of the lower surface of the wall and the upper portion of the plurality of legs can abut and receive reinforcement from the terminal end of the mounting opening when a force is imposed on the cooking pot support surface.
In one embodiment, the plurality of legs are inclined at a predetermined acute angle outwardly with respect to the wall so that a load on the cooking pot support surface will urge the legs to deflect angularly outwardly and provide additional support to the portable cook stove and a more stable base for the cooking pot to prevent tipping thereof. In another embodiment, the mounting portions further comprise nuts and the plurality of legs are threaded coaxially therein. The plurality of legs can further comprise a shoulder which receives a bottom edge of the wall, or flanges with mounting apertures therethrough, which are attached to the wall via fasteners extending through the mounting apertures. A lower edge of the wall can have a groove in register with each of the plurality of the ground-engaging legs and the mounting portion can be received within the groove to minimize side-to-side and rocking movement of the corresponding leg with respect to the wall.
In another embodiment, the mounting opening and the terminal end are on the legs and comprise a v-shaped opening having a shoulder. The wall can have a rounded rectangular shape or be circular.
In another embodiment, the at least one cooking pot support is a v-shaped brace mounted to an interior surface of the wall. In yet another embodiment, the wall can have top and bottom edges, wherein the wall engages each of the plurality of legs at a point intermediate the top and bottom edges whereby the engagement resists the outer deflection of each of the plurality of legs during loading of the portable cook stove. The burner can also be positioned at the mid-height of the wall to maximize the diversion of wind away from the burner.
The invention also relates to a method of packaging a portable cook stove comprising the steps of providing a carton of a predetermined size, providing a portable cook stove in a disassembled state comprising a wall having a closed hoop configuration having a top edge and a bottom edge and defining a central opening therethrough having a plurality of cooking pot supports mounted to the wall adjacent the top edge thereof and extending into the central opening, a plurality of legs, a cooking pot defining a cooking chamber therein, a burner adapted to be mounted to the wall, and hardware for attachment purposes, inverting the wall so that the cooking pot supports comprise a floor portion adjacent the bottom edge of the inverted wall, placing the inverted wall inside the carton, placing the cooking pot within the central opening inside the inverted wall atop the cooking pot supports, placing the legs, the burner, and the hardware inside the cooking chamber of the cooking pot, and closing the carton, whereby the carton can be sealed and shipped to a desired location and the packaged portable cook stove occupies less space than a portable cook stove packaged utilizing conventional packaging methods.
The method can further comprise the steps of placing packing materials around the components in the carton to prevent damage to the components in the carton during shipping, unpacking the carton and assembling the portable cook stove, and loading a plurality of cartons packaged according to the invention into a standard shipping container for delivery.